Agios Pharmaceuticals Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NASDAQ:AGIO)

Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:AGIO) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 8,407 call options on the company. This is an increase of 582% compared to the typical volume of 1,233 call options.

Agios Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AGIO traded down $22.55 on Wednesday, hitting $22.95. 9,514,397 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 732,422. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.25 and a beta of 0.89. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $40.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $37.01. Agios Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $22.35 and a 52 week high of $62.45.

Agios Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:AGIO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($1.78) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.93) by $0.15. The business had revenue of $12.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.49 million. Agios Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 28.35% and a negative net margin of 895.86%.Agios Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 43.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $16.22 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Agios Pharmaceuticals will post -6.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AGIO shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Agios Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Agios Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Agios Pharmaceuticals from $52.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Scotiabank dropped their price target on shares of Agios Pharmaceuticals from $71.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Agios Pharmaceuticals from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Theodore James Jr. Washburn sold 8,546 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.87, for a total value of $315,091.02. Following the transaction, the insider owned 868 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $32,003.16. This trade represents a 90.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sarah Gheuens sold 3,302 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.92, for a total value of $145,023.84. Following the sale, the insider owned 61,727 shares in the company, valued at $2,711,049.84. The trade was a 5.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 16,099 shares of company stock valued at $620,092. Company insiders own 4.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Agios Pharmaceuticals

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Creative Planning raised its stake in shares of Agios Pharmaceuticals by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,119 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $527,000 after buying an additional 280 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Agios Pharmaceuticals by 16.7% during the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,237 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Agios Pharmaceuticals by 16.2% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,582 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $105,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Agios Pharmaceuticals by 0.4% in the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 132,083 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,393,000 after purchasing an additional 512 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Agios Pharmaceuticals by 0.3% during the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 224,746 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,520,000 after buying an additional 573 shares during the period.

Agios Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Agios Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers and develops medicines in the field of cellular metabolism in the United States. Its lead product includes PYRUKYND (mitapivat), an activator of wild-type and mutant pyruvate kinase (PK), enzymes for the treatment of hemolytic anemias.